Wet-Nursing In The Operating Theatre

This is nurse Li Baoxia, breastfeeding an infant undergoing surgery. And for a million reasons, my heart sings just looking at this image.

The one month old baby boy was having surgery in a Chinese hospital earlier this week, but since the surgery required only a local anaesthetic, he was awake during the operation.

As the little boy cried and wriggled, nurse Li Baoxia decided to offer him her breast. As a lactating mother herself, she wet-nursed the infant, who then settled in her arms - allowing the operation to continue successfully.

The medical team present described the experience as "incredibly moving"* and the boy's father's gratitude was captured so beautifully below:

"Thank you! You didn't only treat my child, you also nursed him! As a father, you have my endless gratitude. You are an angel nurse!"*

Because we live in a world where breastfeeding still makes front-page news. In some instances, such as Jessica's story and Tanya's story before her, breastfeeding divides audiences...informed versus uninformed...yet in this case, I am hopeful that audiences will be a little more united.

Because really, this is a case of one human being, stepping up and soothing an infant in the most efficient and natural way that she could find in the moment.

In reality, this is a story of mother nature and modern medicine working together in harmony.